menace
sensitive souls with the dangerous two-edged sword. This angel
is
a
lady
who is
already
a
grandmother
and
who has kept her
soul
young
and fresh
despite
the
many
blows fate had in
store
for her, and who is
marvelously
grand and yet
truly
feminine in
her
attitudes. In
a
word,
fortunately
I do not have the time to torment myself with sweet
thoughts
on
how would it be
now
if...and
if
not...etc. I
am sure
you
know how
one
usually
does such
things.
Unfortunately,
I have not been able
to
give Byland
some
of the
roses
because by that
time
he
had
already
left
for Lenzburg, the
lucky
fellow. No doubt he will visit
you,
I asked him to do it. I do not
quite
understand why, but this
gives
me some
shadow of
compensation.
I
feel
as
if
a
part of
me
had been there
--
I know that
we
see
eye
to
eye
in
many
things.
It's
funny
-
as
if those
eyes
had
a
mission to
fulfil
--
and this
is the
very
reason
I
am
not coming
myself.
Now I
really
must
laugh
at
myself!
Thousand
greetings
and
kisses!
Your
Albert
36.
FROM
MILEVA MARIC
[Heidelberg,
after 20 October
1897]
It's
now
been quite
a
while since I received
your
letter,
and I
would have
replied immediately,
would have thanked
you
for the
sacrifice
involved
in
writing
4
long
pages,
would have also
given
some
expression
to the
joy
you
provided
me
through
our
trip together,
but
you
said that I should write to
you
some
day when I
happened
to be
bored.
And I
am
very
obedient
(you
may
ask
Miss Bachtold),
and I
waited and waited for the boredom to
set
in;
but
so
far
my
waiting
has
been in vain and I really don't know how
to
manage
this;
I could wait
from here to
eternity,
but then
you
would be
right
to take
me
for
a
barbarian, and, again, if
I
write, then
my
conscience is not clear.
I
am now
roaming,
as
you
have
already
heard,
under German oaks in
the
lovely Neckartal,
whose charms
are now,
unfortunately,
bashfully
wrapped
in
thick
pea soup
fog,
and
no
matter how much I
may
strain
my
eyes,
all I
see
is
a
certain
something,
desolate and
grey
as
infinity.
I do not
believe
that
the structure of the
human
brain is to be
blamed
for
the fact that
man
cannot
grasp
infinity,
he
certainly
could
do that if in his
young
days,
when he is
learning
to
perceive,
the
little
man
wouldn't be
so
cruelly
confined
to the earth,
or
even
to
a
nest, between 4
walls,
but would instead be allowed to walk out
a
little into
the universe.
Man is
very
capable
of
imagining
infinite
happiness,
and he should be able to
grasp
the
infinity
of
space,
I
think that should be much easier.
And people
are so
clever, just
to
think of all they have already accomplished, I
see
this also here with
the Heidelberg professors.
My
father
gave me some
tobacco to take with
me
and I
was
supposed
to hand it
to
you,
he
wanted
so
much
to
whet
your
appetite
for
our
little country of
brigands.
I talked with him about
you, you
absolutely
must
come
with
me
someday. The
marvelous
conversations
you
would have here! But
I
will
take
over
the role
of
interpreter.
But I
cannot send
it
to
you, you
would have to
pay
duty
on
it, and then
you
would
curse
me
along with
my
present.
Is
it
Mr.
Sanger who has become
a
forester? The
poor man
will
34